Facebook data centre in Co. Meath will be size of eight Aviva stadiums

Facebook’s new data centre in Clonee, Co. Meath has been given permission to expand before work even starts on the 621,000 sq ft site.

The social network now plans to add a second building to the site, its second data centre in Europe, after it was granted permission to build the extension this week by the local council.

The new building will bring the size of Facebook’s data centre to 621,000 sq ft, or, the size of eight Aviva stadiums (Lansdowne Road).

The Clonee data centre, is Facebook’s first in Ireland and the second in Europe after the one in Luleå, Sweden.

Tom Furlong, vice president of Infrastructure at Facebook, said: “We’re thrilled to have found a home in Clonee and begin building our new data centre as we continue to expand our infrastructure in Ireland.

“Everything here has been as advertised — from the strong pool of talent for construction and operations staff; to the great set of community partners who have helped us move forward quickly; to the opportunity to power our facility with 100 percent renewable wind energy.”

It will use renewable wind energy and construction will create 2,000 jobs, with 150 long-term jobs once the data centre is up and running, no later than 2018.